The present invention relates generally to instrument supports and, more particularly, to an instrument delivery head for supporting hand-held instruments used in dental and other medical procedures.
Instrument delivery heads are used in dental offices to support various hand-held instruments used by a dentist or dental technician during a dental procedure. These instruments may include water and air syringes and various hand-held drill and polishing instruments used by the dentist or technician. The instrument delivery head is suspended on a movable delivery arm so that the instrument delivery head can be moved to a convenient position near a patient during the dental procedure and then moved out of the way to allow the patient to exit the dental chair when the dental procedure is finished.
The instrument delivery head typically has a base that supports various valves, fittings and tubing required for operation of the hand-held instruments which are connected to the instrument delivery head and a removable lid supported on top of the base for concealing these components within the instrument delivery head. The lid is also used to support an instrument tray or various instruments during the dental procedure. Various instrument controls are provided on the instrument delivery head that permit the dentist or technician to adjust operation of each instrument. For example, these controls may adjust water and air parameters of the instruments so that operation of the instruments can be configured according to the dentist""s preference or for a particular dental procedure.
In the past, several manufacturers of instrument delivery heads have placed the instrument controls within the instrument delivery head so that the controls are only accessible after the lid has been removed from the base. To access the controls, the dentist or technician must first remove the instrument tray or instruments supported on the lid and then find space within the room to temporarily place the tray and lid while the necessary adjustments to the controls are made. This procedure is cumbersome for the dentist or technician and also increases the risk that the lid will become unsanitized after it has been temporarily removed from the base. To reduce this risk, the lid is typically disinfected before it is placed back on top of the base to support the instrument tray.
Other manufacturers of instrument delivery heads have mounted the controls on a side or front wall of the base so that the lid does not need to be removed to permit adjustment of the instrument controls. The controls are configured to require special tooling to permit user adjustment of the controls so as to avoid the risk that the controls may be accidently or unintentionally bumped or readjusted during the dental procedure. While the lid does not need to be removed to permit user access to the controls with this instrument delivery head, the special tooling required for adjustment of the controls is inconvenient to the dentist or technician. In addition, the controls are exposed to debris from the dental procedure which complicates sanitary cleaning of the instrument delivery head after each dental procedure.
Therefore, there is a need for an instrument delivery head that provides a dentist or dental technician with convenient and safe access to instrument controls of the instrument delivery head.
The present invention overcomes the foregoing and other shortcomings and drawbacks of instrument delivery heads heretofore known. While the invention will be described in connection with certain embodiments, it will be understood that the invention is not limited to these embodiments. On the contrary, the invention includes all alternatives, modifications and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of the present invention.
An instrument delivery head in accordance with the principles of the present invention includes an instrument head base and an instrument head lid mounted for movement relative to the base between open and closed positions. In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the lid is mounted to the base through a pair of concealed hinges so the lid is movable between the open and closed positions.
Instrument holders are mounted to the base and include multiple handpiece stations for releasably holding various hand-held instruments used during a dental procedure. The lid supports multiple sets of handpiece controls that permit a user to adjust operation of each instrument when the lid is opened. The user is able to close the lid after the control adjustments have been made to conceal the instrument controls within the instrument delivery head.
Movement of the lid to the open position is accomplished through a pair of lift mechanisms that are mounted to the base and operatively engage the lid. Each lift mechanism includes a lift housing and a lift body mounted to extend and retract relative to the lift housing. Each lift body is biased for extension relative to the lift housing through a compression spring so that a free end of each lift body operatively engages an inner surface of the lid.
A releasable latch mechanism is provided to retain the lid in the closed position against the bias of the lift mechanisms. In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the latch release mechanism includes a latch mounted to the lid and a slidable latch release mounted to the base. A button actuator is supported on a side wall of the base and is connected to the latch release. To open the lid, the button actuator is manually actuated to cause the latch release to release engagement of the latch, thereby permitting the lift mechanisms to open the lid to the open position. After the necessary adjustments to the instrument controls have been made, the lid is closed by pushing down on the lid to retract the lift bodies against the bias of compression springs until the latch engages the latch release.
With the instrument delivery head of the present invention, the handpiece controls are supported within the instrument delivery head when the lid is closed so they will not be exposed to debris from the dental procedure or be accidentally or unintentionally bumped or readjusted during the dental procedure. The lid is easily opened to permit access to the controls through actuation of the latch release. After the control adjustments are made, the lid is closed to conceal the controls within the instrument delivery head. The lid is connected to the base so it does not need to be removed and stored when access to the controls is required. The controls are easily accessible when the lid is opened and trays and other items supported on top of the lid do not need to be first removed before the lid is opened.
The above and other objects and advantages of the present invention shall be made apparent from the accompanying drawings and the description thereof.